A bipartisan coalition of Illinois' most powerful political leaders gathered at Chicago's Roosevelt High School Tuesday morning to express their support for granting driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants in Illinois.

Missing in action among the Tuesday coalition of political leaders were the state's two Republican legislative leaders, House Minority Leader Tom Cross and Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno. A Cross spokeswoman told the Sun-Times that the House Republican caucus has yet to discuss the proposal.

"I think it’s a question of safety from all our people in Illinois," Ald. Danny Solis (25th) said of the proposal, WBEZ reported. "Those people need to have a driver's license so they can have insurance so that when they are on our highways, and possibly get into an accident, everybody’s protected."

The proposal, which is being drafted in the state Senate, could come up for a vote in Springfield as early as January.

Both Washington state and New Mexico require undocumented drivers to get licenses, according to the Sun-Times. Last month, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law a bill allowing some undocumented immigrants -- those eligible for work permits under a new Obama administration policy -- to apply for licenses.

California's Proposition 187 was submitted to the voters with the full support of then Republican governor Pete Wilson. It essentially blamed undocumented immigrants for the poor performance of the state economy in the early 1990s. The law called for cutting off benefits to undocumented immigrants: prohibiting their access to health care, public education, and other social services in California. It also required state authorities to report anyone who they suspected was undocumented.
<strong>Status:</strong> The law passed with the support of 55 percent of the voters in 1994 but declared unconstitutional 1997. The law was killed in 1999 when a new governor, Democrat Gray Davis, refused to appeal a judicial decision that struck down most of the law. Even though short-lived, the legislation paved the way for harsher immigration laws to come. On the other hand, the strong reaction from the Hispanic community and immigration advocates propelled a drive for naturalization of legal residents and created as many as one million new voters.